


To Make Him Stay

by DeadlyChildArtemis



Series: Canon but with more Olivarry [2]
Category: Arrow (TV 2012), DC's Legends of Tomorrow (TV), Supergirl (TV 2015), The Flash (TV 2014)
Genre: Episode: s02e07 Invasion!, Invasion! Crossover Event (CW DC TV Universe), M/M, Olivarry is real now folks
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-12-03
Updated: 2016-12-03
Packaged: 2018-09-06 04:15:19
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,848
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8734534
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DeadlyChildArtemis/pseuds/DeadlyChildArtemis
Summary: Oliver convinces Barry not to turn himself over to the Dominators.





	

**Author's Note:**

> Whoo-ee the ship is now canon! Barry and Oliver basically confessed their undying love for each other this crossover, and in honor of their actual, canon date, I have written even more.

Oliver turned on Barry the moment the government officials left and grabbed his arm.  

"Don't do it," he demanded. 

Barry scoffed, ripping his mask off. "Why not?" He asked, his tone acerbic. "It'll only stop the alien invasion, save every single metahuman on Earth from dying, and redeem the mistakes I made. Did you not hear that secret agent guy?" Barry jabbed the emblem on his chest with a finger. " _ I'm _ the reason the Dominators came back! Because I traveled through time, and screwed up everyone's past, present, and future!"

"What if they go back on their word, Barry?" Oliver growled desperately. The world around him seemed tunnel down until it was just him, holding onto Barry, begging him not to leave. He pressed forward. "What if they take you, and then decide they still want to drop their meta-bomb? You're not the only powerful meta in the world. Hell, you're not even the only speedster!"

"This isn't a  _ choice _ , Oliver," Barry snapped, wrenching his arm away. He crossed his arms and turned away. "The Dominators want me."

"You sacrificing yourself isn't an option, either!"

"Guys!" Sara shouted. Oliver blinked and turned to her. "We can debate this back at the warehouse,” she declared. 

"I'm not going back there," Barry said incredulously, continuing, "I know you'll try to convince me to stay, but I'm not going to."

Ray stepped in, dropping a hand to Barry's shoulder. "C'mon, man, don't you at least want to say goodbye?"

Barry's shoulders shook slightly as he hesitated silently for a moment, then one gloved hand reached up to wipe across his face. "I-I'll go back to the warehouse, but only to talk to our friends one more time."

They started heading back to the warehouse. Oliver's heart clenched as he imagined Barry turning himself over to the Dominators, disappearing into golden light the way the President did, the way Sara and Ray and Thea and Diggle did. Out of Barry's line of sight, he shook his head grimly. He wasn't going to let that happen. 

* * *

 

Back at the warehouse, they recounted their meeting with Agent Nameless to the team. 

"The Dominators want  _ what _ ?" Felicity exclaimed. Supergirl, Diggle, and the others made similar horrified noises. 

Barry sighed, looking up at the rafters of the warehouse as if he already regretted coming. "They want me."

"Who they're not getting," Oliver interjected, meeting Barry's glare. 

"Well, it's me or the entire metahuman population," Barry responded, tightening his crossed arms. "Which, might I remind you, includes half the people here, so unless you can figure out a way to repel a worldwide alien invasion in under 2 hours, I really don't have a choice." He sighed, raising his palms to his temples. "I'm sorry, guys, but do I have to do this." He turned towards the massive doors and began walking away. 

"Hey," Oliver shouted after him, a cold, sinking feeling spreading throughout his veins. "Where do you think you're going?"

"To get some air!" Barry called back. 

Oliver looked back at the others, sure his panic was clear on his face. "I'll go talk to him."

Supergirl worried her lip as she watched Barry's retreating back. "Make him stay," she said, her confident voice smaller than Oliver had ever heard it before. Another pang of regret struck him. He shouldn't have been so harsh to Kara. Right now, they needed all the help they could get, no matter how weird. Next to her, the rest of the team made various noises of assent. 

"Tell Red I'll barbecue him if he does it, the idiot," Rory grunted. 

Oliver nodded at them. "I will," he promised, then rushed after Barry. 

* * *

 

He found Barry sitting on the roof of the warehouse, staring quietly at the skyline. Barry glanced at Oliver as he approached, then returned his gaze to the distant horizon. 

"Hey, Barry," Oliver said quietly. "Mind if I sit down?"

Barry shrugged pensively. Oliver took that as an invitation and joined him, letting his legs swing next to Barry's. 

For a moment, both were quiet, Oliver trying to think up the right words to say to change Barry's mind. Nothing convincing enough came to mind. Just a constant stream of  _I can't lose him too, I need him._

Barry spoke, still looking straight ahead. "If it were you," he asked, "would you do it?"

Oliver flinched. He knew the answer, knew what he would do in a heartbeat. He had done the same thing before. "I wouldn't hesitate," he replied honestly, hating himself. "But that doesn't mean you have to."

Barry chuckled wryly, shaking his head. "It's like you said, Ollie. I'm not a god. My actions have consequences, and one of them just so happens to be an extraterrestrial attack. It may not be my fault, but it's definitely my responsibility."

Oliver shook his head, balling his hands into fists in his lap. "Remember the first time we teamed up and Lyla got injured? I blamed myself because I tortured that guy to give up the phone. I thought I was losing pieces of myself, that the only way for me to save Thea and the rest of Star-Starling City was to let Ra's al Ghul turn me into his successor. But you told me that I had a light inside of me, that I was a hero because of my humanity, not in spite of it. And it was because of my humanity that I defeated him."

Oliver touched Barry's shoulders, turning him so he could make eye contact. "You’re still human, Barr. We will find another way to defeat the Dominators, trust me."

Barry's eyes were watery and full of conflict. He opened his mouth, closed it, then opened it again. "I-um-" he sighed and shook his head. A tear leaked out of his eye. "-I'm sorry, Ollie, but I made a promise to not be selfish again. At least this way, I'm the only person who has to get hurt."

Oliver opened his mouth, wanting to shout,  _ I'll get hurt if I lose you!  _ but Barry continued talking over him. 

"A-and Ollie, I know this timing sucks, and I should have said this sooner, but _I love you_ ," Barry said, speaking faster, as if he was afraid he'd run out of time. "You inspire me to be a hero, and the way you keep fighting despite everything you've and _god_ , I love you. I love you and that little smile you make when you're trying not to laugh, and your eyes when you look at me, and-and I just needed to tell you-"

Oliver grabbed Barry in a hug, squeezing as hard as he could. Barry's arms wrapped around him, pulling the two even closer together. He took a deep breath, smelling the faint smoke and sweat that lingered on Barry after he ran. The lump in his throat made his voice hoarse when he replied, "I love you too, Barry, and I've never hated that more than now. I don't want to lose you. We can find another way to stop the Dominators. Please, Barr."

He felt Barry's throat against his neck take in a shuddering breath before the other man pushed him away unsteadily, swiping at his eyes. "I'm sorry, I can't. I'm-I'm going to go see if Nate and Cisco and the others are back. Then... I'll say goodbye."

In the blink of an eye, Oliver found himself standing inside the warehouse again, next to Barry. 

Everyone was there, including the ones who had gone back to 1951, and they all turned to face the two heroes, clear relief on their faces. 

"Barry!" Jax said. "You're back!"

But Barry shook his head grimly, his jaw locked. "I'm turning myself over to them."

"No," Felicity whined, her hands flying to her mouth. "You can't!"

Sara marched up and glared Barry down. "Do you really think the Dominators will just leave us alone after you sacrifice yourself? Even if they do leave, they'll come back the next time another metahuman does something to upset them."

"I-"

"And Central City still needs you," Cisco added. "You know, with Alchemy and Savitar."

Barry held his arms out. "Hey, everyone pipe down for a moment! This isn't up for debate, ok? It's not even a close call. Turn myself over to the Dominators, they leave the rest of the world alone. Simple."

"It is not simple!" Felicity insisted. 

Diggle added, "Barry it doesn't matter what you've done. You can't do this."

Barry didn't seem to hear them, continuing, "It's been an honor to know all of you, to fight alongside you. Now it's time for you to keep our home safe." A weak smile passed his face before he turned around and walked away. 

Oliver shook his head, moving to catch up with him. "Barry!" He called, "I'm not letting you leave."

Barry paused, letting him near. "No offense, Oliver, but you and what army?" He turned around. 

Oliver stopped, face to face with him, grabbing Barry's face, and shoved his lips against Barry's. He felt rather than heard Barry gasp for air against his lips, before he returned the kiss in full force. He felt Barry's arms circle his waist, holding him close. Under his thumbs, he could feel the still-wet tear tracks on Barry's cheeks, and he wiped them away gently. 

Oliver pulled away, touching their foreheads together, to say, "I don't need an army, Barry. I need  _ you _ ."  Another smile, the most genuine one he had seen on Barry's face since they teamed up last year. 

A loud wolf-whistle broke them out of their reverie. Oliver and Barry both turned to look sheepishly at the rest of their team, who all stood together, varying shades of amusement on their faces. 

Grinning, Kara said, "Just so you know, this army is willing to help, too." 

"Don't expect us to kiss you though," Ray added. 

Mick, still looking grumpy, grumbled, "I don't like you, Red, but when you're in a crew, you don't take a hit for the rest."

Oliver could see the hope blooming in everyone's expressions, and turned to Barry with that same hope in his own gut. 

The speedster looked around for a moment, meeting everyone's eyes, before letting out a chuckle. "That was actually pretty inspiring," he admitted, stepping back towards the group. 

Relief surged through Oliver, and he struggled not to let the sappy grin he knew was coming show on his face. He still had some sort of a reputation to keep. Even if he had just destroyed it completely in front of the entire team.

* * *

 

After the plan was formed, and as they prepared for the fight of their lives, Barry pulled Oliver aside for a moment. "I think we should talk, afterwards," he said, "About us."

Oliver let Barry stand close for a moment, reveling in the simple luxury of having him there. He nodded. "Afterwards."

(They did talk, afterwards, alone in the warehouse, and then over beers at a candlelit bar as they held hands under the table. They continued talking for a long time.)

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading! Feel free to geek out about these lovebirds in the comments with me or on my tumblr https://www.tumblr.com/blog/deadlychildartemis.


End file.
